[Gllug] Geforce2

[Vincent AE Scott]

David Damerell(damerell at chiark.greenend.org.uk)@Wed, Jan 23, 2002 at 02:01:14PM +0000:
> On Wednesday, 23 Jan 2002, Vincent AE Scott wrote:
> >>Mac enthusiasts - a similar size group to Linux users - can keep a
> >>complete hardware line alive; and the Linux community have
> >>successfully fought NIC manufacturers and SCSI card manufacturers to
> >>the point that there is no shortage of cards with open specifications
> >>and free drivers. Why should we not do the same to 3D card vendors?
> >i dont think your compairing like for like.  SCSI and NIC cards all
> >operate to a generic specification.
> 
> Nonsense. What happens out on the SCSI chain or on the network is
> specified by standards, but for that matter what happens in the
> monitor cable is too. The interface your computer sees varies very
> much from card to card.

yeah, but you dont see any proprietry super fast additions to the
ethernet or SCSI interfaces.  USR used to have they're own proprietry
protocols, that in their day were much faster than the standards.  and
as a result certain groups of people used them almost exclusively.  

what i was attempting to put into text, was the ability of GFX card
manufacturers to produce a product that far out performs rivals using
their own extensions.

 
> >>This would be the same kind of realist who believed that we'd never
> >>see a complete free operating system, that a free Web server would
> >>never be popular, that companies like IBM would never take free
> >>software seriously, that Microsoft would never feel GNU/Linux was a
> >>threat, etc.
> >no.  it's the kind of realist who admits that 90% of the world uses
> >MS.
> 
> Is anyone disputing that (for suitable values of '90%').
> 
> >it's almost like trying to convince north americans that a standard
> >gearbox on a car is better than an automatic.  you might be right, but
> >changing a culture?  now thats difficult.
> 
> Yes, but no-one is proposing we do that. Changing the behaviour of
> graphics card manufacturers? Won't be the first time.

yep, but only when it's a sizeable percentage that gets the attention of
those within a company that actually make decisions based upon
quantifiable values.  

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